


Days Filled With Sun

by BridgetMcKennitt



Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: Dating, Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M, NPT Treat, Oblivious Akira, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-09
Updated: 2014-07-09
Packaged: 2018-02-03 11:52:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1743743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BridgetMcKennitt/pseuds/BridgetMcKennitt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It wasn't Akira's brightest idea, fake dating Hikaru in order to get Hikaru something from the Japan Go Association, but in the end, it all worked out for the both of them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Days Filled With Sun

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ver (verloren1983)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/verloren1983/gifts).



Akira bowed to his opponent as he won another Go match. When he raised his head, he turned to look for Hikaru amidst the other professionals playing their own matches. Hikaru was in the corner of the room still focused on his own match. Akira stood up and made his way to watch.

There was no competition. Hikaru would win easy and his opponent would give up soon enough. Akira smiled as he was proven right and Hikaru bowed before collecting his stones.

"Congratulations, Hikaru." When Hikaru stood up, Akira led him out of the room. "I thought we could go out and grab a bite to eat. No, not ramen," he said before Hikaru could suggest it. "Something more refined."

"Ramen is plenty refined," said Hikaru as he grabbed his shoes from the cubicle and slid them on. "Besides, we ate at the place you wanted the last time. It's my turn. You know that."

He did. Even after all these years of knowing Hikaru, Akira couldn't help but want to wind Hikaru up when with everyone else, he was able to remain calm and collected. They were twenty years old, but Akira sometimes felt like a fourteen year old around Hikaru. Akira didn't let any of that show on his face however. He shrugged as they left the building.

"Fine, then lead the way, Hikaru."

They walked a few blocks to one of Hikaru's favorite ramen shops. They sat down on the stools and ordered ramen bowls.

"Isn't your father in Korea right now?" Hikaru asked as the shop owner handed Hikaru his bowl of ramen.

Akira nodded. "He is. They're having him do interviews and show up at places instead of playing Go games. It's not something my father particularly liked in the past, but he said he is enjoying himself during the tour."

"That's good. Someday that's going to be the two of us traveling around the world." Hikaru picked up his chopsticks. "I enjoyed the Hokuto Cup when we were younger, but we're too old for it now. I want something similar for us now."

"That would be nice. Father enjoys playing Go against players from other countries. I wouldn't mind competing against players from other countries as well." Akira used his chopsticks to pick up some ramen noodles and brought it to his mouth. He would never be as big of a ramen eater like Hikaru, but he liked it well enough. He'd eaten it enough times with Hikaru.

*

Akira continued to stare at the newspaper article as he had been for the last ten minutes. It was impossible for his father to have said the words that he did during his interview.

His mother drifted close to him. "Is something the matter?"

Akira looked up at her before glancing back down at the article. "I have to speak to father. He insinuated in this interview how pleased he is that Shindou Hikaru and I are finally dating."

His mother placed a hand over her mouth. "Oh my. That doesn't sound like your father at all. Are you dating that boy?"

Akira shook his head. "I'm not. I..." he broke off, unsure what to tell his mother. "I'm not. Do you have father's hotel number?"

"I'm afraid I don't. He said he was going to be traveling so often and wasn't going to remain in one place for very long." His mother placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Hopefully no one will read the interview and get the wrong idea."

"It's a popular Go newspaper. Probably the only one who hasn't read it is Hikaru and that's because as great of a Go player as he is, he's still so ignorant to our world." He sighed. "I better let him know what's going on so he isn't caught unaware."

*

Akira called Hikaru and asked him if they meet up somewhere to talk. This wasn't something he could tell Hikaru over the phone. He suggested a little coffee shop halfway between their houses and Hikaru agreed.

Akira got there a few minutes early to reserve a table for them. He was nervous in a way he hadn't been before. There was no reason for him to feel nervous. The newspaper must have translated his father's reply wrong and it ultimately meant nothing. He and Hikaru were not dating. Neither of them were dating anyone.

The door bell jingled and Akira looked up to see Hikaru stepping inside the coffee shop. Hikaru spotted him, waved, and walked to the table.

"Good morning, Akira."

"Good morning, Hikaru."

"Did you order anything yet?" When Akira shook his head, Hikaru chuckled. "I'll get us something then. You still take your coffee with two packets of sugar, splash of milk?"

"I do."

"Be right back."

Akira watched Hikaru get in line to order their drinks. That gave him a little more time to think about exactly what he was going to say to Hikaru. It wasn't a big deal, not really, but Akira wanted to make a solid plan with Hikaru over what they were going to do.

Hikaru returned with their drinks and he slid Akira's coffee across the table. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Akira took a sip of his coffee before showing Hikaru the newspaper article. "My father was interviewed in Korea and they printed his words to a question they asked. Only I believe they translated him incorrectly. Take a look."

Hikaru took the newspaper into his hands. When he finished reading, he looked up at Akira. "So?"

Akira raised his eyebrow. "So? We have to be ready for the media asking us about our non-existent relationship. I want us to be prepared."

"Prepared for what? I don't think anyone's going to ask." Hikaru shrugged his shoulders as he took a sip of his hot chocolate. "And if they do, we'll just say we're not. I think you're overreacting about this, Akira."

"I'm not. We're rising stars within the Go world and our actions are heavily watched and scrutinized. We have to play this right."

Hikaru's eyes widened. "Are you saying we should pretend that we're dating for the media?"

Akira's mouth dropped open and was about to retort how stupid of an idea that was when he paused. That wasn't such a bad idea. He remembered the mishap when they were younger during the Hokuto Cup and Ko Yong Ha's words about Shusaku was translated incorrectly. It had fueled Hikaru's determination and even though they found out later what really happened, the consequences remained. This time they could use the wrong information to their advantage.

"Perhaps we could. I know you want another Hokuto Cup, but for our age bracket, and I think we could persuade the Japan Go Association."

"With a fake relationship?" Hikaru sounded unconvinced, but the more Akira thought about it, the better it sounded.

"Exactly. We can use this to draw attention to the event and bring new interest to Go. Whatever the Japan Go Association requires of us, we'll do it. All we have to do is pretend we're dating. We're close enough friends that the transition wouldn't be too difficult to pull off."

The look of uncertainty didn't leave Hikaru's face. "I guess. You've never led me wrong before. What do we have to do?"

"The first part is easy. I'm sure others will have seen the article as well, including reporters. We'll let them come to us. When they ask us if we're dating, we say yes." Akira leaned back in his chair as he took a sip of his coffee. "We'll have to coordinate our story so we don't slip up."

"Okay. Did you have something mind already?"

He did, and as he explained their backstory and had Hikaru repeat it back to him, Akira was amazed at how willing Hikaru was to do this. Maybe it was about having another Cup to participate in, but maybe it wasn't. It was just like Hikaru, from the very first day Akira had met him, to confuse and intrigue him. At this point in his life, he shouldn't be so surprised anymore. That was just Shindou Hikaru.

Hikaru nodded firmly, taking everything in like it was a Go match. "Okay, I think I got it. Do you really think people will believe us? Or the article?"

"They will if we sell it to them just right." Akira paused. "There's just one last thing."

"What's that?"

"The relationship part. I mean, the physical part." Akira tried not to flush at the thought. Nothing too intimate, but holding hands and kissing was something they would need to practice and get used to.

"Kissing?" Hikaru asked, like it was nothing difficult.

Akira nodded.

"Oh! We could do that. Can we try it now or is this too public?"

Hikaru didn't wait for a response as he got out of his chair and walked around the table to Akira. There was that happy grin that was so Hikaru as he placed his palm on the table. Akira looked up at him and gave him the barest of nods as Hikaru leaned in closer.

Hikaru's lips were dry and soft as they touched his. Akira placed his hand on Hikaru's wrist and pressed their kiss a little deeper. It was better than he had expected. It was good.

When Hikaru pulled back, Akira tried not to follow after him to continue their kiss. He cleared his throat and tried to maintain his composure. "That went well. We'll have no problem convincing anyone that we're dating."

"Great! Can I plan our first date?" Hikaru waggled his eyebrows and Akira gulped at the expression. "I promise to make it a memorable experience."

"You could, but I don't think we need to go that far."

"Sure we do. I don't want everything to be a lie." Hikaru flashed him a grin. "This is going to be fun."

*

It was fun. Hikaru's idea for their first date was to a nearby festival. He wanted to try out the food stalls and it was something of a new experience for Akira, so he was excited to try it. Hikaru led him by the hand from food stall to food stall, chatting about all the things he wanted to eat.

"I hear the takoyaki here is amazing," Hikaru said as he dragged Akira to the stall. "You should have some."

"I will." Akira stepped up and ordered one for himself and two for Hikaru. He paid for it when Hikaru tried to do it himself.

"Akira?"

Akira smiled at him. "My treat, since we're on a date and all."

"Yeah, but I'm the one who suggested we go here. I think that it means I'm the one who pays for everything."

Akira shrugged. "It was my idea." He took a bite of his takoyaki. "What else did you want to try?"

"If you're paying, I want to try everything." Hikaru laughed and Akira couldn't help but smile at that.

"Okay, then everything."

*

This was it. They both had matches today at the Japan Go Association and while Akira had kept himself and Hikaru away from interviewers by going out on dates, there was no avoiding them today. It was good though. He knew that their fake relationship was only because they were taking advantage of his father's mistranslated words and he wanted to give Hikaru another Cup event, so they needed to talk to the interviewers.

Akira arrived early and walked through the hallway towards the media office. If he could set the tone for the following interviews to come, so much the better.

The door opened and someone stepped out. Akira recognized Nakahara as a reporter and he greeted him.

Nakahara's eyes widened as he greeted Akira. "Touya Akira, I've been hoping to get in contact with you, ever since that Korean interview with your father came out. Do you think you have some time to talk before your match?"

"Certainly."

Nakahara led Akira to an empty room as he got out his recorder. "This shouldn't take that long. Your father was quoted in an article about two weeks ago that you and Shindou Hikaru were in a relationship together. Is it true?"

Akira nodded as he folded his hands in his lap. "We are. I am uncertain how my father found out about our relationship, but we have been dating for quite some time."

"Has either of your parents been supportive of your relationship with Shindou Hikaru?"

"Oh yes. My father has always liked Hikaru and, as you saw, he was the one to share the good news."

The interview continued for a few more questions until Nakahara bid Akira good luck with his match. Akira bowed before leaving the room.

He spotted Hikaru at the end of the hallway and called out his name. Hikaru waved and headed his way.

"I spoke to Nakahara about my father's article and that we're dating. Now all we have to do is use that wave of publicity to push for another Cup, but this time for our age bracket."

Hikaru laughed as he shook his head. "You don't have to do that. I like what we're doing. Someday we'll be playing Go players from other countries in tournaments, but I don't need it right now."

Akira stared at him. "But Nakahara is going to print that we're dating. If it's not for the Cup, what can we use our relationship for instead?"

"We don't have to do anything?" Hikaru patted Akira's shoulder. "We can continue dating. I like what we've been doing. Besides, if I'm dating you, that means we get to go to more ramen shops."

Akira's eyes widened. Hikaru wanted to actually date instead of just pretend to date? It was... it was...

"Akira? You look a little pale there. Are you coming down with something? I can ask if you can reschedule your match."

He shook his head. "No, no, I feel fine. You really want to continue this relationship?"

"Yeah, why not? It's just like what we usually do, except we get to kiss and hold hands sometimes. I like doing both." Hikaru gave him a questioning look. "Why, do you not want to?"

Something within Akira burned bright at the thought of no longer dating Hikaru. It may not have been his original plan, but he didn't want to let go of Hikaru. He reached for Hikaru's hand and laced their fingers together. "I want to," he said quietly. "You've been on my mind since I was a child and I couldn't imagine life without you."

"Great! So when we win our matches, we'll go out on a date. I can tell my mom that we're dating for real. And you can tell your parents."

Akira nodded. "I will, once I'm able to get in touch with my father." Akira didn't know if his father realized his words had been mistranslated or not, but just like he told Nakahara, his father wouldn't mind the news. Akira felt like everyone who met Hikaru saw something amazing inside of him, and that included his father.

Akira drew Hikaru close for a kiss. Now that they were officially dating, maybe someday Hikaru would tell him the mystery from their childhood.


End file.
